Methyl tertiary-butyl ether (MTBE), which is a compound produced by the reaction of iso-butene-type olefins with methanol, contains oxygen atoms in a molecular structure thereof. Accordingly, MTBE is mixed with gasoline to reduce the generation of nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, and the like. In addition, MTBE has a very high octane number of about 118, which is also useful for improving the octane number of gasoline.
MTBE may be produced by reacting methanol with iso-butene in the presence of an acid catalyst. As this reaction is an equilibrium reaction, general reactors are not suitable. Accordingly, a distillation column is installed at a rear end of a reactor to overcome equilibrium reaction, thereby producing MTBE products.
However, since the amount of thermal energy used in the distillation column is too high, there is a need for development of technology to reduce use of thermal energy.